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Stonewatch
Stonewatch is a ruined keep set on the south-eastern corner of the Wyrmwood Forest at the junction of the Stonewatch Way and the Wyrmway roads. The ruin is of a simple, two-story, octagonal keep and is situated on a small hill within the forest just off of the north-south road which parallels the Woodstone Ridge History Built sometime before the Great Silence, the keep was constructed as the private residence of a wealthy merchant or perhaps a minor noble who had enough money or power to convince the workers to build it. The unusual shape of the Shell Fort suggests a dwarven influence and it may have been built or supervised by one of the dwarves of the city of Daedan before it was abandoned. It's entirely possible that the keep was constructed by the Dwarves of Daedan and was abandoned when the city vacated. The fortification was then used and reused by a number of masters over the years but, owing to the expert craftsmenship of the dwarves, it needed no upkeep to the stonework. Ruins The ruins of the abandoned keep is often the perfect environment for some manner of evil to fester within its walls. Whether it's a small pack of Hobgoblins coming through the Wyrmsgate Pass, a monstrous creature that crawled out of the Wyrmwood or something in between, the old keep has had to be cleaned out on numerous occasion. It provides too easy an access to harrass anyone traveling on the road as well as anyone who might stray from the settlement of Stonewatch. in at least one effort to rid the keep of its evil, the far left corner of the structure was blown outward as though a huge blast of energy had ripped through the stone. The rip caused an additional collapse of the floor above and left the keep with section that was open to the forest and generally uninhabitable for most humanoids. This breach reached from the courtyard within to the outter walls, allowing for wildlife of many kind to sneak in and create nests and dens within the chambers of the fortification as well as within the chambers below. The chronicler of the town of Stonewatch records that within the Age of Silence the keep was cleansed of an infestation of Cave Goblins which had managed to sneak their way through the Wyrmsgate Pass with a group of Hobgoblins. Though the Hobgoblins had been defeated, the goblins slunk off to the forests. The band grew in number, establishing a nest within the forest over time and a smaller group broke off and headed south, discovering the ruins of the keep as a new location for a nest. A small band of men were hired by the town's magistrate to clear out the nest and burn out the keep if necessary. The group comprised of an Oakman from the Northern Marches, two Hunters and a pair of guards from the town. To round out their number came an alchemist and dabbler of magic. Reconstruction Once the keep had been 'liberated' from the goblin infestation, the group returned to the town and the magistrate made plans to send builders up to harvest stone from the keep and block up the cellar entrance to keep it from becoming a problem in their future. The alchemist, however, offered an alternate solution. Having recently arrived from the Kels (or so the chronicler reports) as a wealthy merchant, the dabbler offered to claim the keep as his own and pay the craftsmen of the town to have it reconstructed - thus ensuring that the town would not have to concern itself from further infestations. The chronicler reported that the alchemist hired every carpenter and mason in the town and at least two-dozen laborers to help haul stone and aid in cleaning out the lower chambers. The influx of silver into the town's economics was a welcomed addition which made the lives of many more stable for the coming winter. The full reconstruction is detailed in the Chronicle of Stone Hearth. A detailed map of the newly renovated is described at the end of the Chronicle. Stonewatch is a small town on the south-eastern edge of the Wyrmwood Forest in an area which will eventually become the Barony of Wyrmwood. Stonewatch sits at the crossroads of the Stonewatch Way and the Wyrmway and was originally named due to its proximity to a large stone quarry. Some have suggested that it was this quarry that helped in the founding of the dwarven ruins of Daedan. The settlement is on the edge of Wyrmwood Forest within a few days west of the Kessian Mountains. A half a day's walk (a day's wagon ride) north west of the settlement is the ruins of Stone Hearth, a small keep set up in the hills of the forest. Ownership The reconstruction and ownership of the old keep was all due to an Alchemist from the Kels named : Holdings The reconstructed keep had no holdings originally. There were, however, several places nearby which could have been cleared to create farmable lands *'Brachen Field :' A weedy patch of flat ground down by the Wyrmway that was cleared first during the reconstruction to house the various animals used to feed the workers. The field was later settled with a March House and barn where the new Lord of the keep rented it to his first tennants. The field is used primarily to maintain a small flock of goats and pigs for the keep. *'Triangle Field :' Another weedy patch of flat ground, this one is situated between the Stonewatch Way and the small road which leads up from the crossroads of the Stonewatch Way and the Wyrmway to the keep itself. This field was cleared fairly quickly when the keep was being renovated as it was used to burn the bodies of the goblins who had been nesting in the keep's lower chambers. Generally considered to be a 'pyre field' throughout the reconstruction, the area was eventually walled off with a stacked stone wall and used to grow alchemical herbs. *'Fern Field:' A larger patch of land on the eastern side of the Wyrmway and opposite the access road to the keep, the field was so named because of the abundance of ferns upon it before it was cleared for farming. The area was settled with a March House at the conclusion of the keep's reconstruction and is used to produce cereal crops such as oats, wheat or barley. Category:Settlement/Wyrmwood Category:Settlement/Wyrmway Category:Fortification/Keep Category:Settlement/Hinterlands Category:Knightshold